Hi everyone, just wanted to share my almost finished new creation and also to ask your opinions?

This blouse is something I have wanted to make for a while, because it’s got a retro, 40’s esque shape and a great feature (peplum) to help hide my worst feature (tummy) when I wear pencil shirts, and also, because it’s a novelty print that I love!

I think I’ll be making more vintage shaped garments with modern printed fabrics because I reckon it makes them really interesting and with things like peplums it stops them from looking like every other persons peplum blouse that you see around lately (damn you, current fashion trends)

So onto construction; I started with a basic bodice block that I drafted, lowered the back into a really deep “V” shape and added a 6-inch peplum which I essentially drafted as a circle skirt and lined the back split together with the bodice for the zipper, which I hand sewed in. I actually sewed the peplum on backwards(with the right side of the print facing inwards), so my seam ripper had a good time with the project. I also made some bias from a random scrap of powder blue chiffon I had lying around and put that around the neck hole for some contrast and a nice finish. The sleeves have been the bane of this project for me! I can’t decide what I want to make! At the moment they are just temporary mini flounce with a semi circle of the fabric, which is set in just like a regular sleeve. What I am thinking is to make a 1/2 length cuffed sleeve and finish the cuff edges off in the bias tape, but I worry that with the peplum and the busy-ness of the fabric that it may just be too many focal details and get a bit messy, so any input you may have would be well recieved.

The fabric is a nicely weighted Poly-cotton that I got for a steal on eBay and I have about a metre of it left, so I can really do anything with the sleeves as I have enough fabric.

My beautiful stunning 13 year old sister is growing up fast and getting really interested in clothes and boys and make-up etc., so I thought it might be fun to help her find her own style and design a dress (based on eras past, or I probably would have been bored ha).

So we looked around the web, and found some great starting points and they all seemed to lead to the Late 60′s mod look, (but without – as she put it “mr. men triangle shapes”). So we went for this shift dress with a slight nip and the waist for shape and a straight skirt with four tucks (two front, two back). and she just LOOOOVED the fabric and contrast bias (hand made using the continuous loop method)

It’s all hand drafted patterns (intentionally made a little large because she is shooting up and filling out very quickly), and it’s all hand sewn too. We are proud of it, even though it isn’t perfect and could fit better, it’s the first thing she has ever had a hand in making!

*PROUD SIS MOMENT*

My apologies for the terrible quality of these images, they were taken in haste on a phone!

After getting Vintage Vogue 8728 I was envisioning it as a gorgeous easy dress that would just come together simply and quickly and be a go-to for emergencies.

Well I suppose it did come together quickly and easily, really it was a dream to sew – the only problem is that it came together about 2 sizes too big. I mean it’s freakin’ HUGE, my shoulders are wide and even they couldn’t hold the straps on. and in the waist it’s at least 4″ too loose. And not to mention way too long!

I suppose patterns like this are why I should make a muslin, and even reading some reviews might have helped, but no I insisted on powering through and this is what I get!

Have a giggle at these pictures, it’s such a hot mess!

So over the next day or so, out will come the seam ripper and I plan on gathering the bust more, removing some fabric at the side and shoulder seams and deepening the back darts (also maybe adding two at the shoulders because the gaping is ridiculous) and raising the hem by at least 3-5″.

Have you suffered any sewing disasters because of sizing and fit issues and how did you manage to pull it back to something you might like?

I found this adorable spotted Rayon in my local Textile Traders, with the sole intention of making a 1940’s day dress. I have managed to narrow it down to these two patterns, V2787 and V8728. Both patterns have their downsides and reviewing woes, but check out these pintrest boards I’ve found with others versions V8728 and v2787

GAH I cannot decide. Obviously, V8728 would be a lot more wearable day-to-day but on the other hand V2787 is such a special design, I will make both eventually, but this fabric will be one of them, which will it be? Which would you make??

First off, my apologies for so long of a break from the Blogosphere, SO much has been happening! But hopefully it’s all settling down now.

We have moved into a new house in lovely, quirky Mt. Lawley, it’s perfect for us and just five minutes more onto my daily commute, a worthy sacrifice to get out of the toxic environment we were in. Honestly, our last landlord actually sold our house without us even knowing! So glad to have moved on.

We also had a big angry moment at Harvey Norman over a faulty USB wifi adapter they sold us that overheated so much it actually left a blister when I yanked it out of the P.C., and they were so rude about it, refusing to refund or replace it, but we managed to get another store to replace it with something in the same price range (No way were we getting the same one again!). So I am back on the interwebs and sewing too.

Take a look at this cute Circle skirt I’ve made in a lovely rayon/cotton blend. I was so drawn to the fabric for the fact that it was Hawaiian print but in dark kind of stormy colours (hey I think the 16 year old Goth in me was happy), but the store only had 2 metres left so I was kind of stuck on what to make considering that it has an obviously directionality to it, but by creating two half cirlces and sewing them together, the flowers and scenes are only slightly sideways on the side seams, so I can totally live with that hahah and I decided on a shorter length for two reasons; 1. Limited fabric and 2. Summer here is really kicking in, I don’t need extra fabric to lug around in the heat!

(Please excuse my flip flops (As I said it’s too damn hot here))

It is a little shorter than I’d like, but the summer is here, so I will probably be happy of that fact soon enough

I found the construction extremely straightfoward and even hand-picked the zipper. Hemming a single fold baby hem took forever as I did it by hand *yawn* but even with the hand sewing, it only took a single, humid afternoon!

How is the Heat treating you, or the cold depending on your hemisphere?

I love a Bargain!! Who doesn’t, really? Op Shops/Charity Shops/Thrift stores (depending on your local vernacular) are a great way to pick up a bargain and find something vintage too. I LOVE them.

Recently, my Mum, my sister and I took an afternoon together combing some local Salvos (Salvation Army) stores looking for vintage-y sewing and crafting stuff and we were not dissapointed. Mum loves to quilt and she found a 10kg bag of fabric scraps and remnants for $5.50, not bad!, and we found two copies of a locally printed “sewing with knits” book for $2 so we each took one.

The book is great, filled with hints and even some pattern drafting advice

I picked up this 1980’s handheld sewing machine (I’ll have to replace the battery pack though as the wires are slightly corroded), but it has all the parts included except the instructions, though I’m sure I will figure that out without to much hassle haha

It comes complete with some adorably typo’d usage suggestions and illustrations

I also grabbed a buttload of zips in various colours (can you say 50c each? hah) and these cute buttons;

The patterns we found were all for kids or teens mostly, and we have no young kids in our family right now, so we just left them be apart from this one I found which I think the shorter version in red wool would look quite 50’s, especially with a self drafted collar added instead of that round neck thing it has going on. Might turn out well!

Honestly, I am surprised I don’t trawl the charity shops all the time, but sometimes there are better things to do, like enjoy the unseasonably pleasant weather on the balcony of my favourite bar with my favourite person; here’s how we spent our thursday;

As I’m sure you’ve noticed I missed the Fall For Cotton deadline, which is a bit of a bummer but I decided that rather than rush it, I’d forgo the competition, and take my time to make the blouse something that I would wear, instead of look at it and say “Eugh, look at the shoddy job on that!”. Anyway, I’ll post about that soon!

Back to now, the summer is COMING! (Here in the Southern Hemisphere), which means I need some summer clothing! And I have about a month or two before the heat really kicks in (It gets 40 degrees celsius plus here in Perth). So my plans include; A playsuit, some shorts, cute blouses and a dress or two.

First up is my Playsuit; I have decided to sew a vintage styled one-shoulder playsuit with a matching overskirt.

Here is the picture I have drawn up, and the fabric I’ve chosen, which is a light Cotton poplin in a ditsy polka dot and strawberries on a grass green field.

THIS IS WHY I SHOULD JOIN PINTREST!

My inspiration images I have gathered from combing the internet and blogs as well as the covers of old sewing patterns and old photography. I do not own any of the images below, and I am not too sure where most of these came from originally, (I saved them all in my images folder) so if you see your photo here, let me know and I’ll credit you! xx

What do you think, anything you’d make? or would you use that fabric for something different?